France Tour. September 2015. Part 3.

September 11th.

Weather still good. Left at 1030hrs, headed for St Geniez des Olt. Been there before staying in Gites. We love he place so had to visit again. Broke all my no toll rules and crossed the Millau Viaduct, 11.40 Euros. Dropped down towards Millau to get fuel and supplies at Geant. Back onto A75 for 30 mles then cross country to St Geniez. Arrived Camping Marmotel 1400hrs. 6.50 Euros a night with EHU on ACSI card. Booked 2 nights and set up by the river.

After a cuppa took a walk into town, a nice stroll along the river.

Town just as nice as we remembered. Looked in a few shops, didn't buy anything, but thought we might tomorrow. Then of course a beer,

hence the grin. Hazel had one too.

Walked back along the other side of the river. Back at site showered etc, then settled down for the evening. A terrific thunderstorm came along and lasted about 1/2 hour. 

September 12th.

Awoke to a fine morning. Another stroll along the river, 

this immediately behind our pitch, as is this.

Spent a nice morning in town, bought a few bits for Teeny Weeny World and had a lovely Cafe Creme sitting in the sun. Walked back along main road. Went into a builders merchant and Hazel found some wire cutters for her miniature work, she'd been looking everywhere for them, home and away, so a result. Popped in Inermarche for some bits then back to Eevie. We hadn't been back 1/2 an hour before a major storm hit. After an hour the river had risen noticably. Then the rain eased.

This matches the first one above, 

this the second.
  During the lull we both grabbed a shower. Rain off and on then bed. On the road tomorrow.

France Tour. September 2015. Part 2.

September 8th.

Up early, another lovely day. Left site 0830hrs. Pleasant rural roads until Clermont Ferrand then onto the A75, this is toll free for the whole way down to Millau, there is a toll for the Viaduct but we would descend into Millau just before it. Arrived Camping du Viaduc 1310 hrs.

Sign on door, reception open 1600 - 1900hrs, but new arrivals could find a pitch and set up, then pay when it opened. This we duly did.

After a brew it was only 1400hrs so we decided to go into town for a look round and sort the fees when we returned. The town is only a 10 minute walk and well worth it. 

French towns always seem to be well kept and looked after unlike ours. There was some lovely little narrow streets with shops of all varieties.

We had a good look round and I'm fairly sure we didn't miss any. Then naturally we gave a cafe the benefit of our company.

After a couple of beers we made our way back to the site, even tough it's quite large it's very well camouflaged, tucked as it is among the trees.

If you're that way inclined, there are sunbeds available to use in the grass area by the beach.

Sepember 9th.

Left site 1015hrs, bound for the coast, a long winding climb from Millau up to the A75. There were some long climbs while on the Autoroute, made poor old Eevie pant a bit. Took the exit at Agde then the main road to Marseillan Plage. Arrived at Camping Le Creole 1315hrs. Notice on the gate stating it was full. Drove a little further to Le Galet, they had room, booked for 2 nights, then found a pitch and set up.

It was quite hot, had a cuppa, then inhitched the bikes for a bit of exploring. Cycled the 3 miles to Marseillan. Had a look round, thinking of a beer when Hazel said she had a puncture. Got the tools out, and the pump I thought was dual only did presta valves. Hazels bike had schrader. So even if I could repair the tube I couldn't pump up the tyre. Then she pointed to my bike, yes, a flat. Nothing for it but to walk. Pumped mine up and it held, so why it went flat I don't know. When we got to the smooth path with about a mile to go, Hazel scooted hers. Back in Marseillan Plage I spied a bike shop with a board advertising puncture repairs. Sod it I thought get done here. The sign over the shop said Crusty the bike man. Walked in and this long haired old man came from the back, he said, "got a problem mate, Crusty will sort it for you". Thats exactly how he spoke, turned out he was from Enfield. He set to on the repair while I bought and drank a bottled beer from the Pizza take away next door. When all done we returned to Eevie. Relaxed for an hour or so then showered and set off to find dinner. Being where we were we had to have Moule Marinere,

well worth it they were delicious. Washed down with a very good red wine (I'm no keen on white). Unusually for us we decide to have a dessert, a superb Creme Brulet.

Scrummy, hence the clean plate. Then back to the site for drink or 3 and bed.

September 10th.

Decided to just stroll round the town. Went to the beach, it was full of very brown wrinklies, probably down to all the sun, both the brown and the wrinkles. Bought some bits for home and friends then back to the site for a lazy afternoon.

Very nice too. Thought I would catch up on Emails etc so went to the pool where the free WiFi was.

It had clouded over by then, but was still very warm. Back at Eevie all the beach goers were returning, due to the lack of sun I guess. They didn't look happy. I put the bikes back on the rack ready for tomorrow. In the evening we back into town for dinner. This time we had Pizza,

very good, and of course a nice bottle of red to wash it down. A very pleasant evening, then back to Eevie and bed, ready for the road tomorrow.

France Tour. September 2015. Part 1.

The September 5th.

Left home 1900 hrs for Canterbury Park and Ride,

not far from home but enables an early start for the ferry. Went into the Gate Inn for a meal which was not very good. A disappointing start.

September 6th.

Left at 0550hrs for Dover. Got the 0640 P&O sailing to Calais, breakfast in the Brasserie, disembarked in Calais 0915 local time. Drove straight to Adinkirke for my tobacco, then deciding to take advantage of the quiet Sunday roads drove to Camping les Illettes in Charly-sur-Marne just East of Paris. Arrived 1530 hrs, the lady owner was trying to explain something to me, her limited English and my limited French made it difficult. Eventually using an app on her phone she was telling me there could be some noise from the pickers. What it was, was a lot of Poles were in tents on site with vans, they were picking grapes locally. They were fine, there was some noise in the morning at 0700hrs as they set off for work. it wasn't a problem for us as we were hitting the road anyhow. We had spent a nice evening outside enjoying the warmth.

And we both enjoyed a good sleep.

September 6th.

Left at 0900hrs, we had picked Nevers as our next stopover. As is usual progarammed sat-nav to avoid tolls and off we went. Had a very pleasant drive in the most part. Arrived Camping de Nevers 1400hrs. A very nice site by the river.

Checked in for 1 night and set up.

Had a cuppa, as you do, then talk a walk across the bridge for a look round. 

As can be seen the weather was lovely, quite hot in town. Sadly almost everywhere was closed, nowhere for a beer, and couldn't even find a boulangerie to get bread and cakes. The Cathedral is quite imposing,

but even this we couldn't go in. So back to the site, relaxing in the sun and enjoying the surroundings.

Hazel did some miniature weaving for Teeny Weeny World, with a glass of Pinot Grigio, me I just had a beer and did nothing.

The hoody was because the breeze off the river was quite cool. In the evening Hazel had a 1st go at "Toad in the Hole" cooked in the Remoska.

An outstanding success. Decided that tomorrow we would do a long run and go to Millau. Then to bed.

Winchester. August 2015.

August 2nd.

After our disastrous last trip we had 5 new tyres fitted, 1 to the replacement spare wheel, also a new locker door. So we decided on a trip to get our confidence back. France wasn't an option as the problems in Calais were ongoing. Also because of this roads in Kent were frequently log jammed due to operation stack. I decide on Winchester as we could use rural roads and avoid the problems, plus neither of us had been there, so a new experience.

  Left at 1030 hrs in hot sunny weather. Had a very pleasant problem free drive through the countryside, much nicer than motorways. Arrived at Morn Hill CC site 1500hrs.

"

Set up in glorious weather. Took a walk to the bus stop about 5

 minutes, checked the timetable for tomorrow. Had a very enjoyable barbecue in the evening, sat outside until 2200hrs. then bed.

August 3rd.

Another lovely day. Took the 15 minute bus ride into town for a look round. Checked a few shops but didn't buy anything. Walking in the main street we came across some nice buildings.

This was an old water mill, the grinding stones are in the corner. Then this lovely tudor building.

Buildings certainly had character in the old days. Not far from here was this pub,

with the now standard smokers gathered outside. We didn't go in for a drink so can't comment. All in it's a nice city, well worth a visit. We had another day so after strolling some more we caught the bus back to the site and spent another pleasant evening sitting outside.

August 4th.

Bright and sunny again, so on the bus again into town. We planned on culture this time, rather than retail. Took a stroll along the river to the Cathedral.

Wasn't long before I started singing "Winchester Cathedral" as recorded by the New Vaudaville Band in 1966. Naturally with my voice Hazel soon told me to shut up. Oh well "she who must be obeyed" as Rumpole said. Inside the Cathedral the roof was stunning,

amazing to think these were built with no modern equipment or machinery, everything by hand. The altar was quite striking too.

Fantastic artistry in the carvings. From here we treated ourselves to lunch in a pub called Alfies, had to really as both our fathers were Alfs. Left here and walked up the hill, before the top it rained the proverbial cats and dogs. We sheltered in an archway, a few minutes later the sun was back and dried everthing up in no time. Visited the Great Hall, where this very good model of Winchester is.

Also here is the "Round Table" of Arthur fame,

I think this is the 3rd place I've been in England that claims to be the home of Arthur and Camelot. A little further up the hill is the old army barracks. Mostly converted to apartments but a small area as a museum of the "Royal Green Jackets" (The Rifles).

With tableaus depicting various events.

Interesting if you like that sort of thing. Walked back down to town had a coffee then bus back to site. Just had nibbles in Eevie as lunch had been filling, bit of tv then bed.

August 5th.

Left site 1000hrs and retraced our route through the countryside, pleasant again. Home 1400hrs.

Disastrous Trip. June 2015.

June 27th.

Picked Eevie up and drove to Hazels brother Julians house in Ashford. He was having a barbecue and we were off to France next day, so we could sleep over and go straight to the ferry in the morning. Had a nice evening and turned in about midnight.

June 28th.

Left Julians at 1000hrs, we'd booked the 1110hrs ferry. After M20 onto A20 we passed through the Roundhill Tunnels on approaching the 40mph limit there was a huge bang, we veered towards the central reservation, I probably over corrected and we spun 180 degrees, finished in the kerb facing the wrong way. I thought we were going over but Eevie righted herself. When my heart rate reduced I took stock. We had had a blow out. The over head lockers on the passenger side had shed they're contents. All our crockery is in them, but only 1 mug was broken, a fine advert for correlle dinner ware. A car had stopped and protected us using his hazard lights. There was lay by by him so I drove carefully into it, thanked him and he left. Called Brittania Rescue, they said Ashford recovery would be there in the hour. Checking around the vehicle the locker door for the leisure battery was broken adrift, the battery had obviously struck it from inside. Also some minor damage to the wooden floor around the wheel, I guess by the tyre. The recovery truck arrived and removed the wheel,

which was damaged beyond use. Here is the remains of the tyre.

We were 2 very lucky people to have got away unharmed. Being Sunday I was unable to source a tyre locally so we decided to continue to France and get them there tomorrow. Caught the 1255hrs ferry arriving in Calais 1530hrs French time. I didn't want to venture far until I'd sourced tyres, I wanted to replace them all as I discovered all were 9 years old, and we needed a wheel for a spare. Camping Bien Assise is ony 8 miles so we went there and booked in for 1 night. We had burger and chips in the bar before getting an early night. We were both drained by the days events.

June 29th.

Left site 1020hrs to search for tyres, Speedy in Calais couldn't do it. I resorted to the Internet and a Facebook Group called Motorhome Adventures. In no tIme someone suggested Feu Vert, I looked at there website and found a branch in Cite Europe. They didn't have any in stock but would have them tomorrow afer 1500hrs, settled for that and paid a deposit. I still didn't want to travel far so we tried Camping St Lois near Ardres, recommended by a friend. Booked for 2 nights. Its a lovely site run by 2 young girls, nice bar and food too. Cycled into Ardres for a look round before settling down for the evening. Also learnt Calais Port was shut by a strike.

June 30th.

Calais was still shut and many people on site were stranded. The couple on the next pitch with a caravan had given up and booked one way on Eurotunnel, £307!!!! Thankfully we had time. Went to Cite Europe, did some shopping then to Feu Vert. Told they wouldn't have the tyres until Friday, this due to the roads in and around Calais log jammed with trucks due to the strike. Got my deposit back and we returned to the site, both extremely pissed off.

July 1st.

Awoke to find the strike was still on and the approach roads to port and tunnel were blocked by burning tyres. With no sign of an end to the strike we had no choice but to try the tunnel. Managed to get a booking for 1730hrs, £206 single!!!!! Left the site and had lunch in Cite Europe. Leaving there for the tunnel, which is the other side of the fence, we had to drive 14 miles along the motorway in order to get back to the tunnel access road. All other options closed by trucks and police. Finally through check in and completely turned over by the UK Border Force, every locker checked, took 45 minutes.

We eventually caught our shuttle which was 45 minutes late. Finally home at 1830hrs.

  A trip from hell better forgotten. Lesson, check the age of your tyres.

July 1st.

Abbey Wood. June 2015.

June 14th.

Weather was good, so decided on a couple of days visiting London. Based at Abbey Wood CC site for 3 nights. Left at 1000hrs arrived on site 1200hrs. Chose our pitch and met our neighbour.

 

This site is in the middle of a busy urban area, yet is a haven of nature. Well known is the habit of the foxes to steal your shoes if left outside. We walked to the station and checked times and prices for tomorrow. Quiet evening of beer, food and tv in Eevie.

June 15th. 

Another lovely day. Got ourselves into gear and caught the 1007hrs train. We got off at Westcombe Park and walked to the river. We had decided to take a trip on the Emirates Cable Car across to Excel. We'd seen it many times so had to give it a go. Eventually got to the river and then the cable station. 

The fare was £4 sinlgle each, which was fine by us. Got our tickets and off we went.

It was very smooth apart from a gentle sway in the breeze. About half way across you discover you're on the flight path to London City Airport, the planes pass quite close.

Very soon you are descending to Excel.

From there we took the Docklands Light Railway to Tower Hill. Walked from there to Tower Pier and caught the Catamaran to Embankmet. Very short trip, about 10 minutes I think. Strange but Hazel actually felt sea sick, so we wont be doing that again. Then got the Underground to Oxford Street, into the "Spaghetti House" where we had excellent pizzas for lunch. Strolled around the West End for a couple of hours, then back to Abbey Wood for the evening.

June 16th.

Another lovey day. Caught the same time train but stayed on until London Bridge, then Underground to Hyde Park Corner. Walked from there through the Rose Garden to the Serpentine. Took a break and had a cup of coffee by the lake.

We then walked along southern side, stopped for a while and cooled our feet in the Princess Diana memorial.

Hadn't seen it before and it's very nice. It was to see the children were allowed to paddle in it. We left the park by the Albert Memorial and walked to the Science Museum for a look round. There is plenty there to see,

it highlights our age when we realise we saw these in use. They have an Apollo Capsule,

amazing to think 3 men lived in this for a journey to the moon and back. From there we caught the Underground to Waterloo, then walked along the South Bank to London Bridge. Train back to Abbey Wood and quiet evening in Eevie.

June 17th.

Up and away, left site 1000hrs and home 1200hrs. It had been a nice couple of days.